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What's Cooking?

These pages and resources are for What's Cooking? clubs (previously known as Cook-it!) and local area leads who are taking part in the What's Cooking? East Midlands roll out.

However, anyone else who is interested in starting or developing a What's Cooking? club (or other cookery club) will find the information useful.

Please use the menu on the left to browse the information.

What's Cooking? background

What's Cooking? looks to use innovative and challenging ways in which to engage young people, their families and the wider community in the whole concept of food sourcing, preparation and healthy eating.

The programme is aimed at young people aged 11 to 14 who work towards developing their core food competencies.

Clubs offer opportunities for young people to work in the following key areas:

  • planning balanced meals
  • food budgeting
  • shopping
  • reading and understanding food labelling
  • safe storage and preparation of food
  • safe and creative cooking of food
  • the meal environment
  • wider healthy eating issues.

Download the What's Cooking? flyer (PDF file, 44 KB) for more information about this programme.

East Midlands roll out (2007/08)

Further to additional funding from the FSA, a further roll out of the programme is currently underway in the East Midlands. We are recruiting 50 clubs across the East Midlands to take part in the programme. 

This programme is being delivered in partnership with local authorities, schools, the health sector, food industry, the voluntary and community sector and other agencies with an interest in this wide agenda. It also fits in with the school development plan and is in line with their out-of-school-hours learning and healthy schools plans.

A steering group in each local authority is being formed in order to enlist the support of dieticians, nutritionists, businesses (supermarkets, restaurants/hotels) and other groups that will be able to support delivery.

The What's Cooking? East Midlands programme is supported by:

North East roll out (2006/07)

Following the successful pilot, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) commissioned ContinYou to work with every local authority in the North East to roll out What's Cooking? with 100 clubs across the region. Read more about the wonderful work that took place in the North East.

Pilot (2004)

What's Cooking? was successfully piloted in two local authorities in the North East, with 6 participating schools in each.  Most sessions took place in school but one local authority had sessions in a Community Arts setting run by the chef there.

As well as the cookery sessions there was funding for 'food forums' which were held on such topics as GM foods (a topical issue at the time) and all the schools in a local authority were invited to attend.